Railroad-terminal.



J. DESPOSITO.

RAILROAD TERMINAL.

APPLIOATION FILED 00T.3o, 1911.

1,022,659 Patented Apr. 9,1912.

A ff

f :www

COLUMBIA PMNoaRAPH co., WASHINGTON. D. c.

JOSHUA DESPOSITO, OF OAKMONT, PENNSYLVANIA.

RAILROAD-TERMINAL.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, .Tosi-rmi DEsrosiro, a resident of Oakmont, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railroad-Terminals; and I do hereby declare the following to be a. full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to railroad terminals, and has special reference to the elimination of handling baggage and mail on the plat* form used by passengers.

The object of my invention is to provide an etlicient form of railroad terminal which will be simple in construction and will entirely eliminate the necessity of handling baggage, etc., in full view of persons embarking and disembarking from the coaches, and will thus tend to eliminate the usual noise and confusion attendant in the handling of baggage in the present way, while the inconvenience and annoyance to the passengers caused by the handling of said baggage will be done away with.

My improved terminal is not adapted for use in any location where ground is cheap and easily obtainable, as in such a case the tracks can be placed so far apart as to admitI of a special baggage platform being placed between each pair of trains, but in large cities where ground is very expensive and where from the nature of t-he surrounding locality it is impossible to place separate baggage platforms, my improved terminal will be of inestimable value. h

The usual arrangement now in use in large railroad terminals consists generally of a system of tunnels either parallel or at an angle wit-h the tracks on which the trains are standing, said tunnels giving access to elevators which either lift or lower the trucks loaded with baggage to the same platform where the passengers are handled. There are also, as mentioned above, installations where t-he truck operation is carried on on separate platforms between the trains, separate and distinct from the passenger platforms. In arrangements of this character the trucking platform must be of sufficient width to permit two trucks to pass in opposite directions, making a platform of from ten to twelve feet wide necessary.

My invention consists, generally stated, in the novel arrangement, construction and Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 30, 1911.

Patented Apr. 9, 1912. seriai No. 657,636. l

combination of parts, as hereinafter more specifically set forth and described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

To enable others skilled in the art to which my invention appertains, to construct and use my improved terminal, I will describe thc same more fully, referring to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of my improved terminal showing the baggage handling device in two different positions. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional plan view of the same on the line 2 2, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a modification of my improved terminal showing a portion of the same in cross-section.

Like symbols of reference herein indicate like parts in each of the figures of the drawing.

As illustrated in the drawing, my improved terminal for railroad systems consists of a train shed l, and such shed may be used or omitted, as desired. The shed 1 is of the ordinary shape and construction and forms no part of my invention. The shed l has the usual pillars `or columns 2 for supporting the same, and such pillars are usually of steel structural work, or reinforced concrete, and support the roof 3. I

The columns 2 are placed in rows in the shed in the longitudinal direction of its length and between each of said rows is a passenger platform t and a track 5 located on each side of said platform. When the such portions are provided with a smoke vent 7 above the center of each of the tracks 5 in order to allow the smoke issuing from the engine to escape from the shed.

In my improved terminal for railroads I increase the space between the cars on either side of the row of columns 2 so that between the outsides of said cars a space of about five feet is obtained. As the space between the cars in the ordinary form of train shed now used must of necessity be at least two and one-half or three feet very little extra ground space is required in order to obtain the amount of space desired.

Below each of the rows of columns 2 is a tunnel 8 which is of any width desired, and such tunnel is provided with a pair of rails 9 for the transmission of a conveyer 10 to any point of the same by means of the wheels 11 operating on said rails. Within the conveyer 10 is a hoist 12 which is adapted to be raised to a position even with the floor of the car or train 6 standing on the tracks 5. This is accomplished by means of a vent 13 which extends longitudinally the entire distance between each of the columns 2 and in the center of the space between the cars or trains 6 on either side of said columns, and such vent is provided with sliding plates 14 which may be opened at any point desired in order to allow the hoist 12 to be raised at a position coincident with the door of the baggage or mail coach on the train 6. The plates 141 are arranged in such a manner that they may be slid apart at any point and this is accomplished by the plates assuming a telescopic appearance when an opening is desired in the vent 13.

In the form of terminal shown in Fig. 3 the result accomplished is precisely the same as that accomplished in the form described except that the tunnel 8 is omitted and a compartment 15 is provided upon the roof 3 of the shed, and the vent 13 is placed in the floor of the same in a manner exactly the same as described, while the hoist 12 will be lowered from such compartment until the same is on a level with the floor of the baggage or mail car of the train 6, as described.

It will be clear from an examination of the drawing that if the horizontally movable elevators or hoists are replaced by stationary elevators, one elevator will be needed for each car unloading or loading baggage, and furthermore, each car will have to be spotted, z'. e., stopped in such a position as to have its door coincide with the fixed elevator, unless the space left between the trains is of such a width as to permit a free truck movement at the track level, which is exactly the condition existing today. It will also be noticed that in cases where the train shed is of such a type as to require posts or columns between the tracks, the distance between trains must be increased sufficiently to admit such posts or columns and also furnish the necessary clearance for safety, and in such a case no additional space is required for the adoption of my improvement in railroad terminals. It will be evident, therefore, that with my improved terminal a width of about five feet may be gained for each pair of tracks in the system, and as passenger terminals are generally constructed in localities where the value of ground is very high, and the space available generally restricted, the adoption of my improved terminal would result in considerable saving financially.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracks and having a space between the tracks of each pair, and means substantially the width of said space between the cars on said pair of tracks for conveying baggage or other articles to a position in said space coincident with the doors of said cars.

2. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracks and 'having a space between the tracks of each pair, a subway under said space, and means substantially the width of such space between the cars on said pair of tracks for conveying baggage or other articles from said subway to a position in said space coincident with the doors of said cars.

3. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracks and having a space between the tracks ofeach pair, and means substantially the width of said space between the cars on said pair of tracks for vertically conveying baggage or other articles to a position in said space coincident with the doors of said cars.

t. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracksand having a space between the tracks of each pair, a subway under said space, and means substantially -the width of such space between the cars on said pair of tracks for vertically conveying baggage or other articles from said subway to a position in said space coincident with the doors of said cars.

5. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between t-he pairs of tracks and having a space between the said pairs, a train shed supported by columns in said space, and means substantially the width of such space between the cars on said pair of tracks for conveying baggage or other articles to a position in said space between such columns coincident with the doors of said cars.

6. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracks and having a space between the tracks of each pair, a train shed supported by columns in said space, a subway under said space, and means substantially the width of such space between the cars on said pair of tracks for conveying baggage or other articles from said subway to a position in said space between such columns coincident with the doors of said cars.

7 A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracks and having a space between the tracks of each pair, a train shed supported by columns in said space, and means substantially the width of said space between the cars on said pair of tracks for vertically conveying baggage or other articles to a position in said space between such columns coincident with the doors of said cars.

8. A railroad terminal comprising pairs of tracks for the cars having a passenger platform between the pairs of tracks and having a space between the tracks of each pair, a train shed supported by columns in said space, a subway under said space, and means substantially the width of such space between the cars on said pair of tracks for vertically conveying baggage or other articles from said subway to a position in said space between such columns coincident with the doors of said cars.

In testimony whereof, I, the said JOSHUA DEsPosITo, have hereunto set my hand.

T. B. HUMPHRIES, J. N. Cooxn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

